03 July 2009
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Published on July 3rd, 2009 @ 01:43:18 pm, using 119 words, 1 view
“The body of pensioner has been found in a tenement flat in Edinburgh where it may have lain for up to five years”
If this is the way modern life ends, then send me back to the stone age! I know few people who have not communicated with family and loved ones for years, prefering to just do their own thing. Others that somehow have had children who are un-inspired to stay in contact with their own parents. This is the way you could die if you don’t fix it. All alone, and not missed. It is a very sad way to go.
See the full story at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/edinburgh_and_east/8132642.stm.
16 June 2009
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Published on June 16th, 2009 @ 01:57:55 pm, using 145 words, 25 views
In a crisis, can you call on your workers to tighten their belts with you to save the company? Many businesses may feel that they can but you have to question how enthusiastically those same workers will be. Will they have forgotten previous company behaviour towards them? ( http://www.notthenews.net/index.php/2008/11/03/if_you_say_nice_things_will_they_promote ) BA seems to hope so despite asking their employees to take unpaid time-off or to work for no pay (yeah right!).
Doesn’t it not feel unfair that these employees could not just say no and punish those companies that in the good times ignore the well being of their staff? To keep the job, the company is not really asking, are they?
See http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/jun/16/british-airways-unpaid-work OR
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8102862.stm for the story.
10 June 2009
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Published on June 10th, 2009 @ 01:38:12 pm, using 83 words, 17 views
‘Bankster’ - a cross between a banker and a gangster - has the chance of being the English’s millionth word. Honestly though, I thought the words where inter-changeable considering the many years that banks have been skinning the public and the bloody mess they’ve put us in with their financial carelessness 8-). http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/jun/10/english-million-word-milestone
Of all the news stories out there, this is the one I chose to comment on. Sometimes I worry about me.
20 May 2009
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Published on May 20th, 2009 @ 01:16:36 pm, using 183 words, 36 views
Apparently facebook have had the cheek to move some Welsh cities and towns into England. The cheek of it! see http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/8052252.stm. I groaned when I read ‘Some users e-mailed the US-based site since Friday to alert it to the error.’ What email address did they use? I spent over an hour on Facebook trying and failing to discover an email address to inform them that one of their ‘recommended’ friend suggestions was a person who has sadly passed away.
I understand with services like Facebook with millions of users, publishing an email address may seem scary but smaller companies use forms and try and filter the routing of the email based on certain categories presented in the form, why can’t Facebook or Google for that matter. Have you tried getting an email address for Google? It is that kind of attitude that eventually make users feel that they are dealing with a faceless bureaucratic organisation. Come on guys; help your users out as your FAQs and ‘Help’ pages don’t always contain the answers.
15 May 2009
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Published on May 15th, 2009 @ 08:29:18 am, using 77 words, 19 views
It is amazing how many people take scientists as the unquestionable experts. Some of us know that some times there are vested interests where scientists are ‘pushed’ towards certain conclusions, usually to attract funding. You also have the ones that seem to research the bleeding obvious and those that seem to serve no useful purpose but to keep the boffins busy. Make up your mind on this story but it does prove many answers still elude us.
29 April 2009
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Published on April 29th, 2009 @ 02:11:20 pm, using 71 words, 35 views
Who are these people that find time to complain about adverts? Good to see the Advertising Standards Authority do seem to have a mind of their own. See the list at http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/organgrinder/2009/apr/29/asa-most-complained-about-adverts-2008. Of the ones shown here, the Barnado’s advert was the one I did not like. Frankly I found it disturbing because of the scene repetition - I suppose that was intentional.
16 April 2009
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Published on April 16th, 2009 @ 07:12:31 am, using 62 words, 34 views
47 years old, “never been kissed", unemeployed woman may have felt like she was on the road to nothing when she took up the mantle to do what she loved in front of thousands of people. Now she has millions, all over the world, routing for her. Sometimes news can be good! http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/edinburgh_and_east/7999727.stm.
23 February 2009
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Published on February 23rd, 2009 @ 01:39:59 pm, using 190 words, 49 views
“Since my last report he has reached rock bottom, and has started to dig” or in other words, an old saying involving a frying pan and fire. I just got forwarded this old email chain letter about ‘army insults’ and guess what came to mind? Zimbabwe.
Think, the government of national unity? Look north to Kenya. Survival of MDC? Think about all Nkomo and ZAPU. Do you really think that ZANU-PF are going to give up MDC power? Roy Bennett is already feeling the ‘power’ of the MDC. Hot shot lawyer Mr Biti, new Minister of Finance, with his bowler hat and big house is really is going to save him? In Zimbabwe? I don’t think so.
Sorry folks I am not convinced and I don’t care what the ‘international community’ think – they weren’t much help in the past anyway. Some deal was done and my instinct – not much thought about the poor people of Zimbabwe. I so hope I am proved wrong.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7887546.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/nol/ukfs_news/hi/newsid_7880000/newsid_7888500/7888516.stm and many more.
10 February 2009
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Published on February 10th, 2009 @ 02:44:48 pm, using 119 words, 70 views
“….High street banks and building societies are cracking down on new lending to previously credit-worthy customers using an early warning system, which assesses the chances of borrowers defaulting on loan repayments in the future….”
Seriously, has someone lost their mind? Is it not these same blasted technological prediction and modelling solutions that has lead to the flipping mess we are in? Those same systems that didn’t warn them that buying ‘bad debt’ was a bad idea? A little human interaction will not come amiss now, trust me. After some of us know of successful companies that were started up after banks refused to lend to the eventual millionaire owners.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/money/borrowing/article5694691.ece
09 February 2009
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Published on February 9th, 2009 @ 01:12:14 pm, using 357 words, 63 views
Here is a question. Imagine that you are legally entitled to a £1 million bonus for one whole year of hard slog and stress, but however, everyone says or thinks you should not take the money as the company that you work for has not made any money. In fact, had it not been the help of those who can only dream of that kind of money, it is lucky that you still have a job. Would you take the money?
Would you take it if in fact you made money for the company but some ‘blue eyed’ multi-million bonus boy or even the greedy boss himself gambled it all away on vapour profits and blew away all those long adrenalin filled hours on mortgages and loans that had no chance of ever being paid. Would you now take that bonus? What if those risk taking idiots have now been fired with nice fat pensions and golden handshakes that are actually platinum?
Ok, ok just to make it interesting. If the year before the sh*t hit the fan, you received £1 million pounds in bonuses, would you take the money? Never mind that you now have two big houses (in negative equity now) in the countryside, a yacht and ten expensive cars, investments that have been heading south at a rapid rate and you have no cash in the bank. Would you take the bonus? What if your previous three years bonuses were over £5m, after all last year has been kinda dry for you, would you?
Would you like for some politician, who has no idea of the work, hours and stress that you endured over the last year, point at you as a shark and accuse of you of greedy excess? Those same people who have their noses in the trough year after year accusing you of free loading on the tax payer? Would you take the bonus just to tell them to shove it?
What if your bonus was only a £1,000 pounds, would you take it then?
Be honest, think about it and don’t throw stones.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7878418.stm
03 February 2009
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Published on February 3rd, 2009 @ 08:52:17 am, using 265 words, 74 views
There is nothing in the UK to set off the gender war like the issue of Child Maintenance. The welfare reform bill blog entry at http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/jan/27/child-support-absent-fathers-passport is a good example of the feelings generated - getting nearly a thousand comments in a few days.
In the same week, the New Scientist has a special report (http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20126934.300-special-investigation-could-your-dna-betray-you.html) on how it is against the law in the UK to obtain DNA samples from unsuspecting persons even if that person is your loving spouse that you suspect of cheating on you. Whilst I would want a law against anyone obtaining and using my or any one else’s DNA for any other purpose, I would argue there is a special case in the issue of paternity.
But nothing seems to set off a barrage of female howling like the suggestion that a woman could be unfaithful, conceive a child and lie to another man to look after said offspring. Following closely behind in the howling stakes is the subject off the absentee father.
The first big question really is “do men have the right to know if they are in fact supporting their own children’ or the milkman’s?". If we answer negative to this question, then no other questions need to be answered because there can be no fairness in such a system and the odds are stacked against the man. The welfare reform bill’s clauses will not change anything and will be a waste of time and money. There can be no responsibility without rights.
02 February 2009
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Published on February 2nd, 2009 @ 06:45:23 pm, using 225 words, 53 views
I can’t even be bothered to provide links to any snow stories; every single UK new source is carrying it. I won’t even go into how a Northern European country fails year after year to be prepared for a bit of snow. This weather is like manna from heaven for the news gathers of our society as they are scratching the bottom of the barrel to give us any descent local news. Don’t believe me? Well another thing I learnt from the news today is that following on from Blue Monday (see http://www.talking2myself.com/2009/01/19/blue-monday-blues/ ) , that the first Monday in February has been dubbed National Sickie Day and is statistically the worst day for absenteeism in the UK (see http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/uk/It39s-unhappy-Monday-and-economic.4935004.jp).
Well I didn’t call in sick but I did head for the homestead around lunchtime because of the double worry that I would be stuck in that good for nothing small town I have the misfortune to work and secondly, the high chances that at peak go home time, some prat is going to overturn a lorry or run into one and cause every other person on the planet a lot of pain! With the chance it may not clear up tomorrow, I may call in sick since I missed the boat today! Happy snowing.
31 January 2009
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Published on January 31st, 2009 @ 01:25:49 pm, using 108 words, 55 views
The sale of songs is a lost business model. The songs must be seen as publicity for mechandise and live shows where the real money is to be made. The problem of course is that the record companies and British Phonographic Industry may lose their raison d’etre. I feel for the BPI but the record compnaies who for years have skinned the very people they seek to hound, tough luck! The Internet will make it possible for bands to be famous without them and good riddance. No longer do we have to buy 1 song we like and 20 others we don’t.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/jan/28/intellectual-property-minister-music-filesharing.
29 January 2009
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Published on January 29th, 2009 @ 09:55:24 pm, using 93 words, 64 views
People in Iceland - a country currently in desperate economic trouble - have shipped jumpers and blankets to England this week. A container of woolies arrived in the north-east of England after an appeal on an Icelandic radio station. They were handed to local charities in Hull on Thursday.
Despite the fact that we were threatening their Governement early in the economic meltdown, the kind hearted islanders sent help for pensioners just before the cold snap that is now threatening us again. Not convinced - here it is @ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7858104.stm.
27 January 2009
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Published on January 27th, 2009 @ 10:26:08 pm, using 199 words, 93 views
Two stories from different parts of the world caught my eye. In Thailand, apparently refugees are being sent back to sea with little chance of survival. The worst bit is that the Government seems powerless to stop this misery. [see http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7846570.stm]. On the other hand, the Italians seems unable to cope with the influx and so try to hide their problem confined to an island on the souther coast. Maybe hoping it will sink? http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7847197.stm.
I am pro-emigration. I belive that no matter what misery you inflict on a suffering people, most of the time you can inflict anything worse than what they are running from and sometimes the small chance they will get through will encorage them to keep coming. Moving to pastures new is part of the human expirience, we populated the planet in this way. Why do you think you can stop it now?
What we can do is stop causing our fellow human beings so much misery - help solve the problems that make it necessary to move and maybe we can minimise the misery. How hard can that be?
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